I have found that in studing the War for Southern Independance especially in the Trans-Mississippi that researcher tend to forget the military nature of these events. They tend to look at these things like the Mississippi Expedition of Clark's brigade as independant isolated events or actions rather than as a part of a bigger picture.

Military planning doesn't work that way in most cases. Military planners usually try to make the most effective use of their resources, men and materials, that they could. Because those resource were too difficult to get in the first place.

Most researchers tend to deal only with the event from the time the first bullet was fired until the last Huzzah was shouted. However, in the summer of 1863 almost all operations in Arkansas were aimed at one purpose to assist with the defence of Vicksburg. From Walkers Texas divison being sent from Fort Pleasant at Pine Bluff to Northern Louisiana which ended up in the battle of Milikins Bend to Clark's, Dobbin's and Parson's along the Mississippi river to the Battle of Helena all occurred in a time span of only 10 weeks.

So where all these things that were going on seperate individual events which were unrelated to each other. Or were they a planned Campaign designed by the military planners in Little Rock, Jackson, Mississippi and Richmond Virginia? It is amazing to me that everyone on seem to think that only Lee and Grant or maybe Bragg and Sherman were the only generals capable of planning a lenghty campaign.